Longwood falls in semifinals

Longwood senior Nick Esposito/photo by Garret Meade

MIDDLE ISLAND--The Connetquot Thunderbirds advanced the Division I county finals with a 12-7 comeback victory at Longwood High School Friday night, ending the Lions season at 7-3.
The Lions held a 7-6 lead until Connetquot rolled off a 13-play, 77-yard drive with 1:15 left in the fourth quarter. Joseph Zuco capped off the drive with a touchdown from a yard out. The two-point conversion was no good.
Longwood took over 1:10 left, no timeouts and 67 yards away from the end zone. With under 30 seconds left Lions quarterback Eddie Wess was intercepted on a desperate heave down field to end the game. One kneel down made it official.
Amazingly, Connetquot will face Lindenhurst in the finals after the Bulldogs upset top-ranked William Floyd.
A Colonials-Lions rematch was not meant to be.
Connetquot struck first against the Lions on the second play of the game. Ryan Anderson threw a screen right to Jon Sternbach who took the ball 45 yards down the right sideline. The extra point kick was blocked by Sherif Saad, which looked like would be a pivotal play once the Lions' 7-6 lead looked like it might hold up.
Longwood grabbed the lead late in the second quarter on a long pass by Wess to Tommy Scala down the right sideline. The pass went for 53 yards and the extra point by Jaelisa Rehal gave the Lions the one point lead.
Longwood picked up only three first downs in the second half.

Thoughts on Week 6...

Two weeks to go in the high school football season and things are taking shape. With eight teams making the postseason this year, it's created a lot more meaning to the end of the regular season for many teams which otherwise would be running out the string.

The Longwood Lions improved to 5-1 in Division I and are in prime position to earn the No. 2 seed for the second straight year. The Lions played a terrific first half against a good Lindenhurst team Friday night with their only mishaps coming on the opening kickoff which the Bulldogs returned for an touchdown. Later in the half Eddie Wess threw a late pick after completing a 40-plus yard pass to Nick Esposito, halting a drive that nearly resulted in points the other way for Lindenhurst. The Lions made too many mistakes in the second half, but had built enough of a lead to withstand it. It was a similar game to Week 1 against Connetquot where the Lions built an early lead, couldn't add on, then had to hang on for dear life. Lindenhurst never really threatened to win the game Friday — their last touchdown came on the last play of the game — but it was still closer than you would have liked. 

I've liked the passing defense the Lions have shown this year. You'll remember William Floyd came out throwing against Longwood in Week 2 and had little success. Lindenhurst didn't have much success either until late in the game when the Bulldogs relied on short passes, which the Lions were willing to give up as they played a protective Cover-3.

The Lions finish the regular season against Brentwood at home Saturday for homecoming and then go to Sachem East. I don't see the Lions having too much trouble in either game and should finish 7-1, which means they don't have to face Floyd until the county championship. Of course, even if the Lions slip to a three seed, they still wouldn't face Floyd until the county championship.

What's important to keep an eye on is where Sachem North lands. The Flaming Arrows are 2-4 and finish against Pat-Med and Lindenhurst. Sachem could very well end up in the seven seed and come to Longwood in the first round. That's a very scary first round matchup and one the Lions would be very happy to avoid. Longwood coach Chris Meyer would much rather see a team like Northport in the first round. Even Pat-Med or Brentwood would be a more welcome sight.

The Miller Place Panthers also improved to 5-1 in Division III after a high-powered win against Deer Park Saturday, 47-28. It sets up a huge showdown Saturday at 5-1 Sayville, the team regarded as the best in the division. The Panthers will likely need a win to earn enough power points to receive one of the top four seeds. I think if the Panthers finish 6-2, it won't be enough for a seed higher than five or six, which is hard to believe. Hills West will finish 5-3 and will have more power points than Miller Place at 6-2, unless the Panthers can beat Sayville.

Harborfields has two easy games left so expect the Tornadoes to earn the top seed with an 8-0 record. If Sayville wins its next two, the Golden Flashes will be seeded second. Kings Park, Hills West, Miller Place, Islip and Hauppauge will all be fighting for power points to finish as high as possible. I like Rocky Point to grab the eighth seed, although the Eagles are only 2-4.